Rays following blueprint of 2005 White Sox

AL East champs get creative in trying to maximize limited budget

January 23, 2011|By Phil Rogers | On Baseball

Manny Ramirez stands on first base after recording a base hit. (Cary Edmondson-US PRESSWIRE, US PRESSWIRE)

At some point in the near future, one of baseball's big-ticket franchises will need a new general manager. Any such search should start with the Rays' Andrew Friedman, who built a powerhouse on a shoestring budget and is using creative means to keep his team at the top of the American League East while slashing payroll.

Friedman amassed baseball's best corps of young starting pitchers and believes it will allow Joe Maddon's team to compete without free agents Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena and Rafael Soriano, among others. The challenge was to keep a solid lineup behind the rotation of David Price, Jeff Niemann, Wade Davis, James Shields and rookie Jeremy Hellickson.

Staying ahead of the Red Sox, Yankees and Blue Jays is a daunting task. But Friedman has given his team a chance by following the formula Ken Williams used so well for the White Sox in 2005, turning a few highly paid players into more than twice as many contributing parts.

The key is buying the right players at low prices.

With a total payroll of $75 million and five veterans (Paul Konerko, Jose Contreras, Freddy Garcia, Frank Thomas and Mark Buehrle) eating up half the total, Williams allowed Magglio Ordonez to leave as a free agent and traded Carlos Lee. He restocked the shelves with veterans Jermaine Dye, A.J. Pierzynski, Orlando Hernandez, Cliff Politte and Japanese import Tadahito Iguchi.

With owner Stuart Sternberg ordering a budget cut from $72 million to as little as $55 million, Friedman has found himself in an even tighter squeeze than Williams was in six years ago. He added flexibility by deeming Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett expendable, trading them to the Cubs and Padres, respectively, for nine players, including shortstop Hak-Ju Lee, right-hander Chris Archer and some badly needed bullpen arms. And on Friday he took a huge, pedal-to-the-metal gamble with his cash reserves.

Having let the market come down to fit his thin wallet — as Williams did when he signed Pierzynski and Hernandez in January 2005 — Friedman was able to add two hitters with a combined 14 All-Star appearances and four World Series rings.

Johnny Damon, 37, replaces Crawford in left field. Manny Ramirez, 38, will serve as the Rays' designated hitter. Those two old warriors, both represented by Scott Boras, agreed to contracts worth only $7.25 million, the bulk ($5.25 million) going to Damon, who hit .271 for the Tigers last season.

This is a huge gamble, given the downward arc of both careers. The Tampa Tribune's Martin Fennelly referred to the daily double as being "like grave robbing.''

Ramirez appeared quite finished in September, when the Sox paid him about $4 million to drive in two runs in 88 plate appearances. But funny things can happen. Remember Thomas' 39 home runs for the Athletics in 2006, when the Big Hurt was 38?

"It's going to be great (to be reunited with Ramirez), but also playing with guys you want to start your franchise as a top choice throughout the league, (Evan) Longoria and (David) Price," Damon told the St. Petersburg Times. "And I know Manny's ready.''

The Rays have nothing to lose. If these moves aren't enough to extend their three-year run of excellence, Friedman can start working toward another one. In addition to homegrown prospects such as Hellickson and outfielder Desmond Jennings and the ones who came in this winter's trades, he's sitting on 10 picks before the second round of the 2011 draft.

King of thick skin: It has been clear for a long time that Brian Cashman had the thickest skin in his business — an invaluable trait for a modern general manager — but it was never clearer than when he admitted he pursued former Yankees flop Carl Pavano and advised against giving Soriano a three-year, $35 million deal to serve as Mariano Rivera's setup man.

There's nothing unusual about a GM disagreeing with his ownership group, but it's practically unprecedented to disclose the difference up front.

Doug Melvin certainly didn't do it when the Rangers gave Alex Rodriguez a $252 million deal.

Nor did Jim Hendry do it with Tribune Co.'s pre-sale spending spree, which included the dreadful Alfonso Soriano deal.

Yet there was Cashman last week, saying Hal Steinbrenner pulled rank to sign Rafael Soriano less than a week after Cashman had said he valued his 2011 first-round draft pick too much to send it to the Rays as compensation.

"My plan would be patience and waiting," Cashman told reporters after Soriano's introductory news conference. "They, obviously, acted. We're better, there's no doubt about it. It's not a dispute over the player whatsoever. … It's all the other stuff wrapped around the deal — the money, allocating closer-type money to an eighth-inning situation, those types of things.''